Seed-tester.



W. WEAVER.

SEED TESTER APPLICATION FILED APILS, 1913.

Patented Oct. 7, 1913.

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QXR 44 eases coL uMBlA PLANOGRAPH c0, WASHINGTON. D, c.

WILLIS WEAVER, OF NEAR SEALY, TEXAS.

SEED-TESTER.

menses.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct 7, 1913.

Application filed April 3, 1913. Serial No. 758,664.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIS WEAVER, a citizen of the United States, residing near Sealy, in Austin county, in the State of Texas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Seed-Testers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

Instead of the usual trays divided into compartments for containing, identifying, and separating the different samples of seeds to be tested, 1 use a strip of muslin or other suitable fabric, properly marked and folded, that answers the same purpose and reduces to a minimum the weight, bulk, and cost of this part of the device. In practice I find that a box nine inches in cross section and nine inches high outside measurement is of sufiicient capacity to contain a strip holding 200 samples of seed.

When read in connection with the description herein, the details of construction and arrangement of parts contemplated by this invention will be apparent from the accompanying drawing, forming part hereof, wherein an embodiment of the invention is disclosed, for purposes of illustration.

While a preferred form of the invention is shown and described herein, it is to be understood that it is not the intention to be .limited necessarily to that delineation in interpretation of claims hereinafter, as it is obvious that modifications can be made within the limits of the claims without departing from the nature and spirit of the invention.

Like reference-characters refer to corresponding parts in the views of the drawing, of which- Figure 1 is a sectional view of the device; Fig. 2 is a view of a seed-containing strip; Fig. 3 is a top view, the lid of the container being removed; and Fig. 4: is a view of the core.

Having more particular reference to the drawing, 4 designates a box, preferably cylindrical in shape, formed with walls 5 between which there is a heat-insulating packing 6, and having a similarly-formed lid 7 The seed to be tested is placed in strips 8 of any suitable absorbent fabric. Each strip preferably is made with a continuous central part (4-?) and side flaps a numbered for identification, as shown by Fig. 2. The samles of seed are placed on the central part and the flaps folded over them. If desired, after flaps on one side are folded over samples, additional samples may be placed on them and the flaps on the other side then folded over. The strip, of course, may be made of any practicable desired length and capacity. The capacity of a strip may be increased by forming it of two or more strips such as shown by Fig. 2 sewed or otherwise secured together along the lines ole and f-g. Further, although the covering part of the strip is in the form of flaps produced by cutting the fabric along the longitudinal edges, that part may be of continuous form from end to end of the strip, if desired.

When strips have been loaded with seedsamples, as descrlbed, they are wrapped around a core 9 and tied or pinned in place thereon. The core preferably is a hollow cylinder, closed at the bottom, open at the top, and having lateral perforations or openings 9 After seed-carrying strips are placed on the core, the loaded core is set in the box 4. Warm water then is poured into the core, whence it flows out through the perforations, saturating and warming the strips and their contained seed. When the box is filled, the surplus water is poured off and the lid put in place. The heat-insulated box will keep the saturated strips and the seed therein warm for a considerable time; and, when found advisable, warm water may be poured into the device and the surplus water drained off any number of times. Further, if desired, the strips may be wound on the core only for a portion of its length from the top, and warm water left in the bottom of the box in order to maintain a relatively high temperature for a longer period.

Instead of a series of racks, shelves, or hangers on which ears of corn or packages of seed usually are stored to be identified by their location as related to the location in the tester of corresponding samples, I attach to the ears or packages numbered cards or tags to identify them with relation to the samples. This makes it practicable to store the ears or packages in bins, bags, or the like, where they may remain until wanted for planting, this being more convenient and requiring less space than retention on racks, shelves, or hangers.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and ters Patent, is-

1. A sample-containing element for seeddesire to secure by Letr testers comprising a strip of absorbent'ma terial havlng a continuous*oentral portron adapted to have samples placed thereon and side flaps bearing identifying characters strip Wound therearound, and a heat-insuadapted to be folded over the samples.

2. Aseed-tester-.oomprising a sample-com: taming strip of absorbent material, a core adapted to have said strip Wound therearound, and a box adapted to hold said core and strip.

35A seed tester oomprisingfifa sample-con: taining strip of "absorbent materialgfa hollow laterallyperforatedhore 'adapted'to have" said strip- Wound therearound, and a box adapted to hold ,sai'dcore and strip.

4. A seed-tester comprising a sample-containingastri a core adapted to have said lated box adapted to hold said core and strip.

ture in presence of two Witnesses.

Witnesses G; T. SANDERS," C. H. SANDERS:

Copies 'of this patent mayrb obtained for. five cents eaeh,-.by.=addressing the Commissioner of Patents;

Washington; DIOR? WILLIsWEAVER.

' 20 a In testimony whereof, I aflix my signa- 

